![space shuttle cockpit space shuttle cockpit](http://www.launchphotography.com/Endeavour_flight_deck.jpg)
We discuss several aspects of the design of such a system, including human-machine functional allocations user interfaces to enable and support human-machine interaction, and methodologies for testing and evaluating collaborative operational concepts and associated user interfaces.Ĭompared to today's missions, NASA's next generation of exploration mission will require new cockpit user interfaces and display formats that enable astronauts to operate their vehicles with less real-time assistance from the ground. On next-generation spacecraft, these technologies could be harnessed to replace the traditional Caution and Warning system with a decision and action support system that assists the crew with all aspects of real-time health management operations. Today's health management technologies have much more extensive capabilities that range from detecting off-nominal trends and data patterns to executing fault isolation and recovery procedures. Most notably, the Caution and Warning system does little more than generate auditory alerts and fault messages in response to out-of-limit sensor readings. Ī shuttle crew's ability to manage the health of the spacecraft systems is compromised by the limited capabilities of the onboard health management technologies, many of which date from the 1970s and 1980s. The display formats on the CRTs in the original space shuttle design (and still used in Space Shuttle Endeavour ) have a number of human factors. Several dozen display formats were available for the crew, and an example is shown in Figure 2.
![space shuttle cockpit space shuttle cockpit](https://ak.picdn.net/shutterstock/videos/5665997/thumb/1.jpg)
During entry, the crew might select a display format showing information on the position of the flight control aerosurfaces, such as the rudder. Once the shuttle was in orbit, the crew no longer needed information about the ascent trajectory and might instead view a display format providing information about the robotic arm. For example, following liftoff, the crew might select a display format called “Ascent Traj 1,” which showed the flight path trajectory of the shuttle during the first stage of powered flight (prior to solid rocket booster separation). The information on each CRT was presented in a display format, a window that filled the screen with a specific type of data. The fourth CRT, in the aft section, was accessible by one of the mission specialists. During the launch or entry flight phases, the three CRTs in the forward section of the flight deck were visually accessible by the pilot and commander. The latter were originally available on monochrome CRT screens, as shown in Figure 1. Astronauts on a space shuttle mission access information about the vehicle through a variety of sources, including electromechanical gauges, paper documents, and computer- generated displays. In this article, we describe the human factors principles that guided the redesign. The goals were to redesign the displays to improve situation awareness, reduce workload, and improve performance. To address these deficiencies, the National Aeronautics and Space Admin- istration (NASA) initiated a usability-oriented modification called the cockpit avionics upgrade. The recent upgrade, called the Multifunction Electronic Display System (MEDS), helped to remedy the obsolescence of the original cockpit components, but MEDS did not resolve the human factors drawbacks of the legacy cockpit displays. the 1970s using technology that was advanced for its time. The background was photoshopped from a separate image. The control sticks and seats are missing. Note: this is a composite image that was published prior to this cockpit configuration ever flying. During STS-101 Atlantis will fly as the most updated shuttle ever, with more than 100 new modifications incorporated during a ten-month period in 1998 at Boeing's Palmdale, Ca., Shuttle factory. The new cockpit is expected to be installed on all shuttles in the NASA fleet by 2002, and it sets the stage for the next cockpit improvement planned to fly by 2005: a "smart cockpit" that reduces the pilot's workload during critical periods. The new "glass cockpit" is 75 pounds (34 kg) lighter and uses less power than before, and its color displays provide easier pilot recognition of key functions. English: The "glass cockpit" installed on the Space Shuttle: JSC2000-E-10522 (March 2000) - Eleven new full-color, flat-panel display screens in the Shuttle cockpit replace 32 gauges and electromechanical displays and four cathode-ray tube displays.